Rue, the Real Mockingjay
by TheGirlOnFirexx
Summary: What if Katniss had been trapped and speared by Marvel? What if Rue and Thresh are saved till last, but she wins? Rue, the Real Mockingjay. Rated T, cuz the Hunger Games
1. Deep In The Meadow

**Rue; The Real Mockingjay**

**Summary: What if Katniss had been trapped and speared by Marvel? What if Rue and Thresh are saved till last, but she wins? Rue, the Real Mockingjay.**

**Disclaimer; I own nothing you recognize. If I died..I'd be rich and not on here, posting this story.**

* * *

I hear a scream. A girl's scream. _Katniss_, is my first thought. My ally. I know any girl could make that scream, but I still run towards it.

"RUE! RUE!" Then I know it's definitely Katniss. I run faster, knowing I might die. I get my slingshot ready, with my rock.

"RUE!"

"KATNISS!" I run into the clearing, and see her trapped in a net. What I don't see is the boy from District One, Marvel, holding a spear and aiming it at Katniss.

"Katniss!" she replies to this with my name. Then the spear goes into her stomach. I turn round, and sling my rock into Marvel's forehead. I hear a sickening '_crack_' and he drops to the ground.

I go to Katniss. She weakly pushes her knife through the net, and I cut it away from her. I look at the spear hopelessly embedded in her stomach. She's dying.

"Rue, I blew up the food." Katniss whispers, grabbing my hand. I smile gratefully. "You have to win, Rue."

"I will. I'll win for both of us."

"Sing, Rue, sing." A cannon goes off, obviously for Marvel. I swallow.

I know a lot of songs. My four-note, the lullaby I sang Crisanto to get him to sleep every night. _The Hanging Tree_. I go with the lullaby.

_"Deep in the meadow, under the willow,_

_A bed of grass, a soft green pillow,_

_Lay down your head, and close your sleepy eyes,_

_And when again they open, the sun will rise._

_Here it's safe, here it's warm,_

_Here the daisies guard you from every harm,_

_Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true,_

_Here is the place where I love you."_

Katniss closes her eyes. I let out several tears, but I know I have to finish the song for her. She pulls the mockingjay pin off her jacket, and closes it in my hand.

_"Deep in the meadow, hidden far away,_

_A cloak of leaves, a moonbeam ray,_

_Forget your woes and let your troubles lay,_

_And when again it's morning, they'll wash away._

_Here it's safe, here it's warm,_

_Here the daisies guard you from every harm,  
_  
_Here your dreams are sweet and tomorrow brings them true,  
_  
_Here is the place where I love you."_

Katniss' cannon goes. I sit there crying and then I decide to show the Capitol. Katniss was more than a piece in their Hunger Games. So is everyone.

I go around and find primroses. I know that's the name of her sister, so I pick a lot of them.

I go back to her. I weave the flowers through her hair, around the wound, and around her body. She could be deep in that meadow.

I get Katniss' pack and knife, Marvel's backpack and my rock. Then I kiss Katniss on the temple, and say one last sentence.

"Goodbye, Katniss."

Then I walk away, but I feel vulnerable on the ground, so I climb a tree.

I go through Marvel's pack. I know what Katniss' contains.

He had two spear heads, which makes me feel sick, thinking of the spear in Katniss' belly. He also has knives, a pack of dried fruit, a first-aid kit, a flashlight, a leather pouch and a bottle of water.

I sit, bored, until the anthem came on. Marvel appeared first. Then I saw Katniss. I started crying, and then I fell asleep.

* * *

**Good enough? Rubbish? Amazing?**

**Pretty pwease tell me!**

**~~ TheGirlOnFirexx**


	2. I Have To Find Thresh!

**Rue; The Real Mockingjay**

**Summary: What if Katniss had been trapped and speared by Marvel? What if Rue and Thresh are saved till last, but she wins? Rue, the Real Mockingjay.**

**Disclaimer; I own nothing you recognize. If I did...Rue would have won and caused the rebellion. And PRIM WOULD LIVE!**

***I noticed in my first disclaimer it said 'If I died..' I meant did!***

**A/N In this chap, Rue says how Cato killed the Three boy. She was near the other side of the clearing, so she saw. Kay? She just couldn't see Katniss. Also, she took Katniss' bow and arrows..just to clarify. She left a couple of things out of the backpack.**

* * *

I woke up the next morning, feeling a bit comforted. I had a dream of Katniss. She took me and her little sister Prim to District Twelve's woods. We sang back and forth with the mockingjays for hours.

Then I remember Katniss' mockingjay pin. Somehow, I think of it as a sign of rebellion. Mockingjays are already a slap in the face to the Capitol, but what I did, covering Katniss in flowers, must of annoyed them pretty badly. But I'll probably die anyway. I'm a tiny twelve-year-old, who the only weapon she's good at is a slingshot.

Wait. The bow and arrows. I remembered to take them from Katniss - she would of wanted me to - but I doubt I'll be good with them.

I quickly and silently climb down, weighed down by all the packs and the bow. When I'm on the ground I load the bow and try to aim for the tree opposite. I get a few centimetres away from the target - not bad.

I eat a bit of nuts and roots, and have one berry for the juice. I scale a tree and sit in there, until I hear Cato and Clove.

"That girl must of killed him! He definitely killed Katniss, the net was cut, so the little girl must of killed him!" Clove says. They stop right below my tree. Luckily, they can't see me but I can see and hear them.

"What would she kill him with? A slingshot? That wouldn't kill him!" Cato says. "It wouldn't kill a flipping squirrel!"

They don't know about my rock.

"Well, we're the last Careers left. There's six of us left. When do we turn on each other?" Clove says, and I hear the carefulness in her voice. It's a dangerous topic. He could kill her for mentioning it.

"We won't turn. We'll leave each other and then just hope someone else will kill each other so we don't have to." Seriously? This is the guy who killed the District Three boy by snapping his neck in about five seconds.

Then trumpets blow. Probably a feast.

"Well done to the remaining six tributes. We have made a rule change. Two tributes may win, if they are from the same district." Claudius Templesmith announces. I sit in my tree, shocked. He repeats it, and I know I have to find Thresh.

"Aw, shame Lover Boy can't live with Fire Girl." cackles Clove.

"But we can." Cato says, and they laugh without even caring about other tributes.

But I know what the announcement means to me. It means I have to find Thresh.

* * *

**Not long, but it's where it leaves off.**

**~~TheGirlOnFirexx**


	3. Thresh!

**Rue; The Real Mockingjay**

**Summary: What if Katniss had been trapped and speared by Marvel? What if Rue and Thresh are saved till last, but she wins? Rue, the Real Mockingjay.**

**Disclaimer; I own nothing you recognize. If I did...Coin wouldn't of existed.**

**A/N sweetStarre123 - Rue will meet Prim. She saw her at the recap of the reapings, but she will meet her later, after she wins.**

* * *

After a long while Cato and Clove moved on. Lucky me.

I thought of jumping through the trees to find Thresh, but then I realized it wouldn't be easy, with the bow and arrows. But I didn't feel safe on the ground.

But where would Thresh be? He wouldn't be in the woods part. There was a grain field, it looked like it. He'd be more likely to go there. I climbed the tree as high as I could, and saw it was ages away. But if Thresh was looking for me, he'd be walking here, since he knows I climb.

I tried stuffing the bow into the backpack, but it wasn't big enough. Instead, I hooked it up with the quiver and left it on my back. Then I jumped through the trees. Katniss, and everyone in District Eleven, called me a little bird this way. Mom also said I stood like a bird.

After ten minutes, I was exhausted. I sang my little four-note song, knowing if Thresh heard it, he'd know I was near. And I was looking for him. The mockingjays spread my song around, and soon it was the only thing I could hear. I made a little meal out of a couple of pieces of dried apple, from Marvel's pack. I sat back, relaxed. If only Katniss was still alive, I'd be the most relaxed I've ever been since my name was called out at the reaping.

I drank a little water, well aware my water skin was nearly empty and Katniss' and Marvel's bottles were only half-full. Then I jumped through the trees again.

I nearly fell out of the tree when I heard someone calling my name. It had to be Thresh.

"Thresh?" I said as loudly as I dared.

"Rue!" said the voice again.

"Thresh!" I shouted this time, and then clamped my hands over my mouth. I sang my four-note and the mockingjays responded with a beautiful harmony.

Then they went silent, and started singing a little whistle. Definitely Thresh.

"Rue!" Thresh was closer now. I climbed up, and saw a tiny person walking towards my tree. But even from here, I could see his muscles.

I climbed down again, to the lowest branch, but still out of reach.

I whistled back, and then Thresh was right underneath my tree.

"Rue! There you are! I've been looking for hours." I smiled, and jumped from the tree, landing neatly on my toes. He let out a little smile.

"Still like a bird. So we're a team now, right?" he held out his hand and I remember Katniss and I, making an alliance. But this is different. Katniss and I couldn't win together. Thresh and I can.

I shake his hand, and nod. "Where were you, these entire Games?" I ask.

"The grain field. Let me guess, you were up in these trees, doing your little bird routine?" I start laughing, and nod. "We'll have to go to the grain field. I'm too heavy to climb up these trees. So what weapons you got?"

"I've got my slingshot and a rock. Then when Katniss died, I took her bow and arrows. She was my ally." I whisper, and Thresh looks a bit confused.

"Did that Marvel kid kill her?" I nod, tears welling up. "Did you kill Marvel?"

"Yes. I was so upset about Katniss and he was going to kill me so I shot my rock into his head, and it must of cracked his skull and he died. I didn't mean to. I just wanted to protect myself." I said quickly.

"Don't worry. You haven't changed. I know Seeder told you not to kill anyone and it would change you, but if it was in self-defence...she'd say to kill." Seeder. The closest thing I had to a mother after the reaping and before the arena. Chaff. He was disgusting, but he wasn't as drunk as Haymitch from Twelve. He was kind, sometimes. I only just realize how much I've missed them and how lonely I've been since before Katniss as my ally and after she died.

"Come on, let's go to the grain field. It'll take a long time, probably a day, but if you get tired just say. We'll rest." Thresh says, sensing my sadness. I nodded.

We were going to win. I had to. For Katniss.

* * *

**So this is basically just Rue finding Thresh. Also, it took less than a day because as soon as Claudius Templesmith said the rule change, Thresh went looking for Rue. And they know each other, because Rue's mother knew Thresh's.**

**To me it seems a little rushed, but Rue and Thresh have to hurry, otherwise Cato and Clove will come...I already have the story planned out.**

**~~TheGirlOnFirexx**


	4. BOOM!

**Rue; The Real Mockingjay**

**Summary: What if Katniss had been trapped and speared by Marvel? What if Rue and Thresh are saved till last, but she wins? Rue, the Real Mockingjay.**

**Disclaimer; I own nothing you recognize. If I did...Gale would never have loved Katniss.**

**A/N sweetStarre123 - It's a mystery...To be honest, I don't even know xD. It's the only thing I haven't planned(except Foxface's death).**

**Since Katniss is dead, Foxface(Finch) will die a different way...just gotta think of it.**

* * *

_BOOM!_

"Thresh!" I scream, becoming wide awake.

"Don't worry, little bird. I'm right here." Thresh whispers soothingly. I let out a sigh of relief. "And don't scream. Clove and Cato could be near, you know."

"Sorry. But I was scared..." I whisper, and he nods. "Who was it?"

As if in response, a hovercraft appears over the stream. They lift up a boy with blond hair. Peeta! The guy from Twelve!

The guy who loved Katniss.

"Well, that leaves five tributes. Cato and Clove from Two, Finch from Five and us two." Thresh says, getting out a leg of something. A groosling? He hands it to me, and I remember me saying to Katniss. _"Oh, I've never had a whole leg to myself before."_

Thresh takes out Katniss' bottle and gives it to me. "Eat up, Rue. It's still a long while to get to the grain field. I had breakfast." he adds.

After I finish, we walk along, me holding my loaded bow. Just in case.

We come along a flock of groosling, and I just manage to shoot one. Thresh smiles. "Well done, little bird."

We leave the groosling in Thresh's backpack, not risking a fire. I think it would be better to cook it now, before it gets spoilt. But Cato, Clove and Finch could be anywhere, though I'm not scared of Finch. I've barely seen her since the Games began, and she's working alone. Cato and Clove are together, and with the strength and talent, they are much more scarier.

We go along, and then stop for lunch. This time we risk a fire, but make sure we don't have any green stuff. I carefully pluck the groosling from its feathers, and quickly make a little spit. I place the groosling on there, and wait for it to cook. I scale a tree, and go a little away. You can only just see the smoke from here, it's engulfed in trees. I jump back to the tree above the fire, and jump down. Thresh isn't there.

"Thresh?" I say quietly. No response. I see the groosling's cooked, and take it off the spit. I pick off a little bit, and eat. Then I place it in my backpack. "Thresh?" I say again, louder this time. I sing my little four-note.

_BOOM!_

* * *

**For the record, Peeta died of blood poisoning, cause Katniss is dead, so she couldn't heal him. *mentally cries* I still loves you, Peeta!**

**xD Rue's Little Bird to Thresh, and Prim was Little Duck to Katniss. I just thought it sounded cute!**

**Uh-oh! Who died? Cato? Clove? Foxface? Or...no..THRESH? DUN DUN DUN!**

**~~TheGirlOnFirexx**


	5. Well, Well, Well

**Rue; The Real Mockingjay**

**Summary: What if Katniss had been trapped and speared by Marvel? What if Rue and Thresh are saved till last, but she wins? Rue, the Real Mockingjay.**

**Disclaimer; I own nothing you recognize. If I did...Haymitch would of brought home a victor before Katniss & Peeta.**

**A/N Radio Free Death ; Katniss cried out for Rue because ... well.. I think if that happened to me the first thing I'd do would be to cry out for my ally/friend. My first thought wouldn't be to cut myself out. And then..she sat bored because she couldn't think of anything to do. When my dad died, I sat bored for several days because the only thing I could think of was him. I hope I cleared everything up ;). If not...Sorry! I just wrote what I'd do.**

**And to the person who asked why Thresh and Rue didn't pair up in the beginning - her odds of winning were NOT good. And Thresh might of been able to keep her alive, but he'd have to kill himself if they came down to the final two. He couldn't kill sweet little Rue. So, yeah. :)**

* * *

My head whips up. My first instinct is to call out Thresh's name - but I can't. If Cato is near...

The hovercraft appears - they seem to come out of nowhere - and lift up a girl.

_Clove_. The body doesn't have red hair, which is basically the only way I can identify Foxface. I immediantly wonder if it was my fire that brought her here.

Wait a minute. Cato would never let Clove go off on her own, not with Thresh still here. So that means _Cato's near_! And he must be mad, or grief-stricken, about his ally dying. So, having an angry, grief-stricken Cato near me, with a fire... not good.

I pack up the things as quickly as I can, and then leave the fire. Maybe Cato will think I'm still here.

I scale a tree, and jump from one tree to another until I'm totally exhausted. I wonder where Thresh is. I forgot about him in my haste to get away from that place, but he'll understand. Me, a tiny twelve-year-old, could never win against Cato, who looks like some green thing in an old comic my grandfather has, the _Hulk_ or something, just not green.

I get out the groosling and start eating the meat off the leg. After not eating for most of the day, I'm starving.

Hmm. Each bite reminds me of home. Watching Krysanthe trying to eat the groosling leg she has without getting grease all down her face. Kaeya and Fleur eating and saying how wonderful it is after every single little bite. Lotus gobbling her little bit down. Baby Crisanto picking at his bit of groosling.

Before I know it, the anthem's playing and Clove's face is lighting up the arena.

Four more left. Two more to kill. And Thresh to find.

I'm not tired, so I think I may as well go find Thresh. I get out Katniss' sunglasses, thinking of times when I used to fly in the trees at the orchard, where I worked. It's weird to think, if I become a Victor I'll never have to work again. I don't know what I'd do. Working is most of my life.

But I might not win. Better think in the present than the future.

"Where are you, Thresh?" I say into the darkness. Nothing, of course, answers. Then I start leaping.

I see someone on the ground. "Thresh?" I say loud enough for the person to hear.

They shine a light up to me, and I try to hide my face. It's no use. Who else would be flying through the trees? Then I remember Thresh has no flashlight.

"Well, well, well. Who do we have here, then?"

* * *

**Some Clove fans will probably hate me for killing her off, instead of having Clove and Cato against Rue and Thresh. SWORRY! Clove's like my fave character, but I don't want Clove against Rue, since Cato will go against Thresh. Seriously, who would win; Rue or Clove?**

**DUN DUN DUN!**

**~~TheGirlOnFirexx**


	6. Cato

**Rue; The Real Mockingjay**

**Summary: What if Katniss had been trapped and speared by Marvel? What if Rue and Thresh are saved till last, but she wins? Rue, the Real Mockingjay.**

**Disclaimer; I own nothing you recognize. If I did...I've run out of "If I did"'s.**

**A/N Not really any need for an author's note...Let's head right to the unicorn's tale..**

* * *

Cato's face is lit up in the glow of the flashlight. He's giving his triumphant smile, and his eyes look bloodthirsty. Thresh, where are you!

"So where's your friend? Did he leave you for yourself?" he says, smirking. He whispers something, looking annoyed.

"No. I lost him." I say in a quiet voice, and realize I'm most probably in spear-throwing distance. I scurry up out of his shooting range.

"What are you, a squirrel? So you lost him? How do you know he didn't deliberately leave you? Maybe he got sick and tired of a stupid little kid slowing him down. Maybe he thought you're just gonna drag him into death." I know that Thresh would never do that. But there's a little bit of me that wonders if Cato might actually be telling the truth.

"Thresh would never leave me. Especially since we can both win." I mutter, loud enough for Cato to hear.

"Shame Clove can't help me kill you. I'm avenging her death. Thresh killed Clove, and now I'll kill you." his voice is menacing.

_BOOM!_

Cato looks up and smirks. "I hope that's Thresh. Sad I won't be able to kill him, but oh well."

He throws a spear at me, so quickly I only have a few seconds to dodge. I fall off the branch, but I hang on, upside-down. Another spear shoots up, and this time to my hand. The shock is enough to make me fall out of the tree, though I know the spear only nicked my hand.

I fall flat on my back, every single wisp of breath knocked out of me. As I struggle to breathe, Cato suddenly looms over me. He steps on my stomach, and I immediantly start wriggling.

Is Thresh still alive? Well, if it was up against him and Foxface he'd definitely win. So he might be!

"THRESH!" I scream. Cato steps on me again, and puts a knife to my throat.

"Call out again, and I'll slit it. Thresh is dead, anyway." he carefully takes out the 'might'.

The knife blade is digging into my neck, making it bleed. Only lightly. I'm the second-to-last kill, for him. He's going to play around.

"Hmm. How should I kill you?" he says to himself, and takes out his sword. I feel sick looking at it. _Please, just end it!_

He instead puts the knife to my arm and cuts it. He presses it in, and I have to resist screaming. Then a figure runs through the trees.

_Thresh._

* * *

**Yeah, Foxy died. Let's get it straight now - Thresh saw her picking berries off a bush and attacked her from behind. Yeah? Yeah..**

**~~TheGirlOnFirexx**


	7. Mutts!

**Rue; The Real Mockingjay**

**Summary: What if Katniss had been trapped and speared by Marvel? What if Rue and Thresh are saved till last, but she wins? Rue, the Real Mockingjay.**

**Disclaimer; I own nothing you recognize. If I did...I've run out of "If I did"'s.**

**A/N :) So people really like it! Well it's close to the end - the sequel's gonna be "Fire is Catching", cause obviously all I'm doing is basically swapping Katniss and Rue's roles around, but I didn't want to use Catching Fire. It was gonna be "Caught on Fire"...in fact, review! Which title is better for the sequel, "Caught on Fire" or "Fire is Catching"? Anyway, back to the story! There's only 2-3 more chapters left! **

**I'm around the same age as Rue, so this is basically me writing as if I am Rue. Got it? That's why she sounds so common..xD. Also, Dahlia, Thresh's sister, looked after Rue before she turned ten(which, in my mind, is the age needed to work) and she still looks after Rue's little sisters and baby brother. Dahlia has permission to not work because she and Thresh are the only people who can look after their grandmother, and Thresh is more..useful than Dahlia. And Rue's mother was a school-friend of Dahlia's mother, so she either takes Rue's sisters and brother to her house, or takes her grandmother over to Rue's house. :)**

**I'm going by Clove's movie looks in this chapter, okay?(You'll find out why later)**

* * *

Thresh runs to Cato, and throws him away. The knife Cato was holding - which he dropped in surprise - cuts my arm but I'm way beyond caring. Thresh shouts at me to climb, and I run to the nearest tree. Harder than the other to climb, since the first branch is higher than the others, so I have to launch myself up. I manage to catch the second branch, and pull myself up. I silently thank Thresh for finding me. Cato would of killed me for sure.

As soon as I'm high enough to be safe, I lay on my stomach, watching the boys fight. Thresh has picked up the knife, but Cato's got his sword. I can tell this will be long.

Cato keeps circling Thresh, but Thresh turns with Cato, so he can't get to his back. Thresh keeps throwing the arm with the knife out, in hope to actually stab Cato, but the most he does is make a deep cut in Cato's arm.

There's a few moments when I think Cato's about to kill Thresh, and a few when I think Thresh is about to stab Cato. But it doesn't happen.

Thresh flips the sword out of Cato's hands and catches him in a headlock. Cato kicks him and takes the knife off the floor. Thresh throws him onto the ground, and pins him down. He immediantly jumps up again, clutching his hand. There's a lot of blood, and Cato's smirking. The knife's bloody.

He catches Thresh in a headlock and I flinch. He caught that District Three boy in a headlock and snapped his neck in two seconds. But I don't need to worry. Thresh thinks of me as a little sister, and I know what he'd do for his real sister, Dahlia. He'd survive for her, and if he thinks of me as his sister, he'll survive for me. Because if he died now, I'd go insane, and Cato would kill me and win.

Thresh gets out of the headlock, twists Cato's arm and pins it to his back.

And that's when I hear the barking. (**A/N Yeah, these are the mutts...I wanted to include them**)

"Thresh! Mutts!" I shout, and scramble down the tree. The Gamemakers want to end it, in the open. They want a show. A special finale.

As soon as I'm down, a pair of arms throws me over their shoulder, and starts running. I see the mutts appear, and instantly I start feeling creeped out. There's something about these mutts. They're all different sizes, and colours. There's one with green eyes and yellow - blond - fur. It has a bejewelled collar, saying _1_. There's another mutt that sticks in my mind. It has big grey eyes, and pure black fur. There's something about the eyes. This mutt has a dusty collar, saying _12_.

1, 12. Another with sleek red fur, with amber eyes. 5. The numbers..

_Districts_. So the mutts must be _tributes_.

Katniss! Foxface, the sleek red one. Glimmer. There's another small one, with dark brown hair and brown eyes. 2, Clove!

"Thresh, the mutts ... they're tributes! They're the dead tributes!" I say in Thresh's ear, and now I've said it I know I'm right. There's another blond one, with blue eyes. He's following Mutt-Katniss. _Peeta_. So he's in love with her as a mutt. He must of really loved her. So it wasn't fake! It wasn't a trick to get sponsors! It's a shame Katniss died without knowing Peeta really was in love with her.

So there's Glimmer. There's another big one, brown fur, brown eyes, 1. Marvel. Clove, Foxface, Katniss, Peeta. The District Three boy. He's chasing Cato. Probably to avenge his death. Come to think of it, several mutts are chasing Cato. The rest are chasing me and Thresh. I can understand Mutt-Marvel, Mutt-Clove and the District Seven boy mutt, since we killed them, but there are about five more following us. He must of killed more people than I thought.

"I killed Marvel. Who'd you kill, apart from Seven and Clove?" I whisper. The ones chasing us are Mutt-Marvel, Mutt-Clove, both from Seven, Mutt-Foxface, the boy from Five, and, most sadly, Mutt-Katniss and Mutt-Peeta. Is Mutt-Katniss angry at my not being able to save her?

"Seven, Clove, Foxface. They're the only ones." Thresh says, running faster.

The boy from Five and the girl from Seven must just be trying to avenge their district partner's death. But Katniss and Peeta.. Why are they following us? It must be Katniss, she'd never do anything anyone told her to do and Peeta loved her tons, who's following us. The Gamemakers must of done it - made the tribute I was closest to, apart from Thresh, hate me most.

Thresh, all of a sudden, throws me up onto the Cornucopia. I climb up, and Thresh gets up after. Cato is the other side, so I get the throwing knife Thresh had. After all, I'm good with aim. Even if I don't kill him I might still hit him.

Cato clumsily climbs, and gets out his sword. I hear the death screech of a mutt, and know he killed one.

Thresh breathes slowly. He'd been running for a few minutes, with the weight of me, though I'm not heavy. I sit in the middle of the Cornucopia, scared the mutts will get to me at the edge. Then I'm hoisted into the air and dangled off the side. I can't breathe.

"Go on then. Stab me, and I'll drop her to the mutts." Cato taunts Thresh, and he deliberately loosens his grip. At least I can breathe now.

Thresh grabs Cato and throws him into the middle of the Cornucopia, and I'm thrown too. Lucky me. Thresh then grips Cato in a headlock and throws him over the side. To the mutts.

He doesn't last long. He had his sword, but there's twenty-one of them and only one of him. His cannon booms only around half an hour later.

"Congratulations to the two remaining tributes. Following a revise of the rule book, we have realized only one tribute may win. The previous rule change has been revoked."

_What?_

* * *

**That's not the exact words from the book or the film, but I couldn't be bothered to check. So...does Thresh kill himself for her? Does she kill him? Or they could both win. Eh, I'll think about it. Expect the next chapter in...one to two weeks.**

**May the Odds be Ever in Your Favour!**

**~~TheGirlOnFirexx**


	8. Nightlock

**Rue; The Real Mockingjay**

**Summary: What if Katniss had been trapped and speared by Marvel? What if Rue and Thresh are saved till last, but she wins? Rue, the Real Mockingjay.**

**Disclaimer; I own nothing you recognize. If I did...I've run out of "If I did"'s.**

**A/N Okay, well, I need more people to vote! In fact, I'll just have it as a poll on my profile - What should Rue, the Real Mockingjay's sequel be called?**

* * *

I turn to Thresh. I'm sure his horrified face is mirroring my own.

One of us has to die. One of us will be killed by the other. And that one had to be me, the tiny twelve-year-old from District Eleven. How could it not?

In an instance, Thresh holds a knife to his throat and I'm immediantly scrambling at his chest - the highest place I can reach - to try to stop him.

"No! No! I have to die. Your grandmother and Dahlia!" I shout, but he just hugs me.

"Krysanthe, Kaeya, Fleur, Lotus, Crisanto. They can't grow up without their older sister. Your mother and father. You. You're too young, Rue, you shouldn't have to die. You shouldn't even be here! You're only twelve! You've never lived!"

I know his words make sense. But, if I lose him and win, I'll live with the guilt. The sadness in the eyes and faces of his grandmother and Dahlia. I'm sure he feels it would be the same, reversed. Seeing Krysanthe's sadness when she starts to work near him will never, ever let him be at rest.

I don't want to lose him, I don't want him to die. He's my friend. Like a big brother, who'll always protect me whenever. I need him, and I'm pretty sure he needs me too. It's a Hunger Games tribute's thing. When it's down to you and your district partner, unless you're a Career, you need them. You can't lose them.

The Capitol saw I was lonely, saw Thresh probably wondered how I was doing, so they took advantage. Telling us two could win. Knowing they'd make us fight to the death as soon as we were the last two. Sick and cruel, I call it. Terrific and exciting, that's what they call it. And I brought into it because I needed someone. I needed an ally, someone to protect me. I was the most vulnerable tribute in the Games at that point, I needed someone protective and strong like Thresh.

He throws the knife away, and pulls something out of his pocket. Berries. I've seen these berries before, not in the Games, in District Eleven.

Four years ago, I'd been walking along the orchard bushes, with five-year-old Krysanthe and three-year-old Kaeya. Kaeya saw a bush with lots of little dark blue berries on, so we picked all them off, and ran, laughing, all the way home. We set it on the table and two-year-old Fleur immediantly reached for one of those dark little berries. It was a centimetre away from her mouth when Mother gave a loud shriek, shocking us all. She ran to Fleur, knocked the berry out of her little hand and asked her urgently if she'd swallowed anything. Fleur shook her head, saying no and Mother breathed deeply of relief.

_"Rue, they're nightlock. Never, ever, ever pick these again. You'd be dead in under a minute."_

Nightlock! Thresh was about to eat them, to kill himself. I pulled his hand down.

"If they want a victor, there will have to be two. I'm not going home without you." I say quickly, scraping half the berries off his hand into mine.

"No, Rue. You're twelve-year-old, don't kill yourself!"

"Yes. I need you. On three, together." I say firmly, and we stand next to each other, breathing heavily.

"Three."

They might not care if we die. They might just host another Hunger Games, a Quarter Quell. But everyone will remember me and Thresh.

"Two."

Surely they must have a victor? Why aren't they stopping us?

"One."

I raise my hand to my mouth and Thresh does the same, just at the moment the trumpets blast and there's the panicked voice of Seneca Crane.

"Wait, wait! Stop! Ladies and gentlemen, may I present to you, the winners in the 74 annual Hunger Games, the tributes from District Eleven, Rue Eavard and Thresh Underhand!"

It worked!

* * *

**Yeah, I wasn't in the mood for killing off Thresh. So for the record, Rue's family;**

**Krysanthe - 9**

**Kaeya - 7**

**Fleur - 6**

**Lotus - 3**

**Crisanto - 1**

**Vote, vote, vote on the poll, review, review, review on the story! And...**

**May the Odds be Ever in Your Favour!**

**~~TheGirlOnFirexx**


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